Scoon, 39, an old friend with a criminal rap sheet but no convictions, was believed to have threatened Jay, the Run-DMC co-founder whose real name was Jason Mizell, in the weeks before the slaying.

Cops said Scoon, now a screenwriter living in Atlanta, was embroiled in a dispute with Mizell, 37, over money from a decade-old drug debt, and had promised to "take care of business" unless he got paid.

The murder remains unsolved, and Scoon has refused to talk with investigators.

But in an exclusive interview with the Daily News, he denied feuding with Mizell, adding they hadn't been in touch for years.

"I had no problem with Jay," Scoon said. "Besides, I'm a different person now, I'm a writer. Those thug days went the other way nine years ago."

With his name floated as a suspect, Scoon hired criminal defense lawyer Marvyn Kornberg. But he insists his conscience is clear.

"The only person who knows what happened between me and Jay is me and Jay, and Jay's dead. So that leaves me, and I know I didn't do it," he said.

Yet investigators still believe Scoon and Mizell were at odds over a botched drug deal that involved David Seabrook, a pal from Hollis, where Mizell and Scoon grew up.

In 2001, Seabrook and his wife, Karen Gravano, were busted with her father, mob turncoat Salvatore (Sammy Bull) Gravano, for running an Ecstasy ring in Arizona.

"I know David, I am real tight with David," Scoon said. "We're still in touch all the time, but there is no truth to that story. We all grew up together. Me, David, Jay. We're all from the same area in Queens."

Scoon is upset that the NYPD has not cleared him, now that the names of other possible suspects have emerged - including Randy Allen, a business associate of Mizell's who is said to have collected on an insurance policy he took out on the hip-hop legend.

Former rap producer and Run-DMC road manager Darren (Big Dee) Jordan and his son Karl Darren (Little Dee) Jordan also have been fingered as the last two men seen entering the studio before the shots rang out.

The man behind that story, career criminal Ronald (Tinard) Washington, told The News this year that the Jordans walked into the studio before he heard gunfire.

But Washington is still being eyed as a possible lookout for the killers.

"It's going to take some time to get rid of the stench the police have put on me with this case," Scoon said.

Meanwhile, Kornberg set down his terms for letting the NYPD question Scoon.

"I will certainly let them speak to him, when and if they tell me he is no longer a suspect," the lawyer said.

A NYPD spokesman, Deputy Chief Michael Collins, said it would be inappropriate to comment on the case while it is still under investigation.